G150 Serial Number 202, Logs More than Five Flight Hours on Maiden Flight

Gulfstream Aerospace has added a second G150 business-jet test aircraft to its flight test program – two weeks ahead of schedule. Gulfstream’s newest business jet, the Gulfstream G150, is expected to enter service in the third quarter of 2006.
 
The second production G150 aircraft, serial number 202, completed its first flight Sept. 2 in Tel Aviv, Israel , flying 5 hours, 30 minutes. During the flight, all aircraft systems were cycled and the test aircraft reached a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet and flew at a maximum speed of Mach 0.865. Gulfstream will use this second aircraft for function and reliability testing, which started on Sunday, September 4.

“The pilots reported G150, serial number 202, flew flawlessly during its maiden flight,” said Pres Henne, senior vice president, programs, engineering and test, Gulfstream.

“Like the first G150 test plane, serial number 201, this second test plane impressed us with its outstanding performance qualities. The G150 is proving to be quite a business jet.”

The first G150 flight-test aircraft, serial number 201, has flown some 70 flights, accumulating more than 250 flight hours since its first flight on May 3 of this year. The aircraft’s dispatch reliability has enabled pilots to fly two test flights per day on many of the days the aircraft has been scheduled to fly. The average flight duration has been more than 3 ½ hours per flight.

Gulfstream and Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) are developing the wide-cabin, high-speed G150 business jet. It is being built through its Certificate of Airworthiness at IAI’s facility in Tel Aviv and then flown to Gulfstream’s Dallas completions facility for its final phase of manufacturing.

The G150 remains on schedule for type certification in the first quarter of next year. To offer customers a better look at the G150, Gulfstream developed a true-to-size replica of the G150 cabin and cockpit that is currently being displayed in cities throughout the United States.

FMI: www.gulfstreamg150.com